


Jester’s Guide to Proper Wound Care

by kaeda



Series: Critical Role Tumblr Shorts [4]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: F/F, Ficlet, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing Cuts/Bruises, Pre-Femslash, Tenderness, Unresolved Romantic Tension, wound care
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-05
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-15 07:53:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28560135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaeda/pseuds/kaeda
Summary: How was Jester supposed to know that lovingly tending to her best friend's wounds after the fight with Obann wouldawakensomething in her?
Relationships: Jester Lavorre/Beauregard Lionett
Series: Critical Role Tumblr Shorts [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1930276
Comments: 4
Kudos: 47





	Jester’s Guide to Proper Wound Care

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a list of physical affection prompts on tumblr - the request was from [cierics](https://cierics.tumblr.com/) for #22, kissing someone’s cuts/bruises/scratches.
> 
> Takes place in the few days after the fight with Obann when they're all still in Rexxentrum. You can interpret this as a missing scene from canon, where then they went on to pursue their canon romantic interests, or you can consider this the start of an AU where they continue to explore their relationship! The timeline is up to you, friends. Also, I haven't watched those episodes in awhile so please excuse any inconsistencies.

The inn in Rexxentrum was quiet as sunset washed over the city two days after the showdown with the Laughing Hand and Obann. Yasha had _finally_ returned to them, and Jester was trying to reassure herself with that as she sat on her bed in her shared room with Beau and hugged her knees to her chest, watching Beau unwrap the bandages around her arms.

“—and now we’re talking about going to find a fighting ring. I think it’d be good, get out some of that excess energy,” Beau said as she pulled the bandages away from the cuts and bruises that littered her arms and hands from the fight. Jester watched her wince as a particularly deep cut caught the cloth of the bandage, but Beau pulled it loose without pause. She seemed to not even notice the state she was in, concentrating on the routine action of re-bandaging herself.

Jester didn’t like it. Beau was so hurt, not just physically but also spiritually, she could _tell_. Being betrayed by Yasha had been heartbreaking for all of them, but Beau had been _actually_ stabbed through the heart, in more ways than one. Jester still saw the image of her impaled on Yasha’s sword on the backs of her eyelids when she closed her eyes.

“Beau,” she said out loud, still staring at the cuts. “Beau, Beau, Beau. Do you need healing? I can maybe use a spell slot…I haven’t used very many today.”

Beau shook her head immediately, turning around to hide her arms from Jester’s view. “No, I don’t,” she said vehemently. Jester blinked in surprise, and Beau stared back at her, the two of them watching each other, both somewhat shocked by Beau’s strong response to a simple question.

Jester forced herself to breathe. They were all a little broken, these days.

“No,” Beau corrected at last, her tone much softer. “Thank you, but…I like the memory. Of what we went through, of what we had to do to accomplish what we did. The pain – it makes it feel like it _mattered_. Y’know?”

Jester did know, although she tended to do that with emotional wounds rather than physical. “Okay,” she said calmly, unfolding her legs and sitting up on her bed. “I _won’t_ heal you, Beau. I would only do that if you wanted it!” She got to her feet slowly, amazed at the calmness that had spread through her at Beau’s sharp tone, at how she’d zeroed in immediately on Beau’s pain. She was focused now, watching Beau’s facial expressions for any minute change.

Jester took a moment to break eye contact as she dug in her bag and pulled out the medicine kit she’d acquired long ago, barely used. Thankfully, it still contained plenty of fresh bandages and even a salve to prevent infection. She pulled them out and walked over to Beau, who still hadn’t moved.

Beau regarded her for a moment before looking away, eyes averted in a way that was almost delightfully bashful. “What are you doing, Jes?” she asked. The wounds on her arms were still unbound, the dirty bandages pooled on the floor by Beau’s own bed.

“Beau,” Jester said gently – she’d say it was her wounded animal voice, but it was _far_ more gently than she ever talked to Sprinkle! Maybe her healer voice? Was Jester turning into a _real_ healer? Maybe this was _growth_ , she thought as she guided her hands to Beau’s shoulders.

Beau froze beneath her touch, eyes wide.

“Sit down. Let me treat your wounds! I won’t heal them, I promise,” Jester coaxed.

Beau nodded, still not meeting Jester’s gaze as she sunk down to the bed. Jester wasn’t sure if she was seeing things, but it looked like Beau’s skin tone was rosier than usual, especially along the back of her neck – was she _blushing_?!

Carefully schooling her face to give nothing away, Jester moved her hands from Beau’s shoulders and gently cupped her right elbow, bringing one of her wounded arms forward. She ran her fingertips over the scratches, humming softly under her breath the way her mama used to do when Jester brought her a skinned knee.

“Jes…” Beau murmured.

“Shhh, Beau,” Jester said, leaning down to press a gentle kiss against the deepest gash, the one that had caught in the bandage earlier.

Beau made a strangled noise in her throat. When Jester looked up, Beau’s cheeks were _definitely_ rosier than before. Jester felt her own cheeks heating as well and blinked in surprise, not expecting such a reaction from a simple soothing bit of affection.

Interesting! She leaned down and kissed another scratch, just a gentle brush of lips.

Beau made a high-pitched sound, almost a whine, and Jester looked up at her. Their eyes locked. “Oh god,” said Beau. “Jester. What are you _doing_?!”

Jester swallowed thickly around the lump that had suddenly appeared in her throat. She tried to summon her usual cheer. “My mama would always kiss my cuts before she bandaged them,” she said, but her voice came out kind of strangled, with none of its usual pep. “She said the love would heal them.”

“The love,” Beau repeated like she’d been hit in the back of the head with a board.

Jester reached for the salve, hoping that continuing the process of treating Beau’s wounds would diffuse the weird tension that had sprung up between them. She balanced the small vial in one hand, uncorking it and coating two fingers in thick paste before spreading them gently across all of Beau’s open cuts on both hands. Beau gave another small whimper, but otherwise was silent.

Jester glanced up at her face, and almost wished she hadn’t. Beau’s mouth had fallen open and her eyes were a bit dazed, like she couldn’t believe what was happening. The warm undertone in her cheeks had grown even brighter.

Jester was startled by how fiercely she wanted to kiss Beau _senseless_.

Shocked by her own thought, the salve slipped from her palms, the vial clattering to the floor with a shocking amount of noise. Beau jumped as if startled, and before she could think, Jester found herself making soothing noises at her even as she reached for the vial and righted it.

Beau looked down at her and started to pull her arms out of Jester’s grasp, but Jester held on firmly. “No, Beau,” she said sternly. “These need to be re-bandaged.”

“Jes,” Beau said, her voice faint.

“Beau,” Jester repeated sternly. “Stay!”

To her delight, Beau did as she was told, still watching her with a dazed expression as Jester unwound the clean bandages from the medicine kit and began to tenderly wrap her forearms.

Jester focused on the work of securing the bandages, ignoring the warmth in her cheeks. The urge to kiss Beau hadn’t really faded, but she hadn’t had time to figure out what it meant, so she was determined to ignore it and not let it make things weird. There would be time to think about it later!

She patted her finished wrappings gently, smiling up at Beau as though nothing was wrong.

“There you go,” she chirped. “Now when you go fighting later, you’ll be ready to beat them all!”

“Y-yeah,” Beau replied shakily, pulling her arms out of Jester’s grip. “Thanks, Jester.”

“You’re welcome,” Jester said. She stood up and hurried back to her own side of the room to stow the medicine kit back in her bag. This time _she_ was the one not meeting Beau’s gaze.

“I’m—I’m going to go find Fjord,” Beau said, her voice still strained. “I’ll see you later?” She fled quickly out the door into the evening, leaving Jester alone with her far-too-confusing thoughts.

What had happened?

And how, Jester wondered, touching her lips with the tips of her fingers, could she make it happen _again?_

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Feel free to come hang out with me on [tumblr](https://the-kaedageist.tumblr.com/) for more exciting Critical Role shenanigans.


End file.
